john mmcain
From Politico.com
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) plans to celebrate his 72nd birthday on Aug. 29 by naming his running mate at a huge rally in the battleground state of Ohio, Republican sources said.
That’s a week from Friday, and the day after his rival, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, accepts the Democratic nomination at a 70,000-person spectacular in a Denver stadium.
The campaign has begun building a crowd of 10,000 for Dayton, Ohio, according to an organizer. McCain is scheduled to appear with his running mate at a large-scale event in Pennsylvania shortly thereafter.
Senior Republicans are in the dark about who he’ll name, although they say former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty are prime contenders after a trial balloon by McCain gave him very negative feedback about the idea of picking an abortion-rights running mate such as Tom Ridge, the former governor of Pennsylvania and the first secretary of homeland security.
Sources close to McCain say he has wrestled with the choice, torn between a high-stakes, high-reward pick like Ridge or Connecticut Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman — the Democratic vice presidential nominee in 2000 — or a safer and more conventional selection such as Romney or Pawlenty.
Friends say he has yet to make a final decision, and is not expected to do so until after Sen. Barack Obama announces his choice.
McCain friends emphasized that he talks about the decision with almost no one, and could even change the announcement plans and go sooner.
“McCain views this as the one decision that he has total, utter, nonnegotiable control over,” one campaign official said.
The announcement strategy — provided McCain doesn’t change it — calls for naming the pick early Friday morning to try to suppress Obama’s bounce coming out of his convention.
“You’re going to own the weekend,” a McCain official said.
The Republican convention begins the following Monday — Labor Day — in St. Paul, Minn.
McCain advisers say they don’t think it would make sense to name the vice presidential designee earlier because the impact would get diluted by Obama’s selection. And because the GOP convention is second, they have the advantage of knowing the opposition ticket before showing their own cards.
“You can fire the bullet once,” said one key Republican. “You want the most meaningful target.”
Alex M. Triantafilou, chairman of the Hamilton County (Ohio) Republican Party, said in an exuberant post on his blog this weekend: “Sen. McCain is expected to host a rally on August 29 in Dayton and is looking for a BIG venue and for a BIG crowd. He'll get it. This is not yet public. I guess I just made it so.”
The post has been removed without explanation.
PolitickerOH.com reported Monday morning that the event will be at the 10,000-seat Ervin J. Nutter Center, a sports and entertainment complex at Wright State University.
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A Different Kind of Poiltics?
Take a Stand Against Destructive Political Attacks
This past weekend, Barack Obama’s campaign surrogate Gen. Wesley Clark attacked the military service record of John McCain. Despite Barack Obama’s repeated claims that he will be running a different kind of campaign, it is clear that he and his surrogates have failed to deliver.
With no record to rely on, all the American people can hold Senator Obama to is a promise – the promise of a different kind of politics. Twice now, Barack Obama has been given the opportunity to fulfill that promise and twice now he has failed to deliver.
First, Senator Obama broke his promise to the American people that he would use public financing and help clean up a broken system. After months of pledges to use the system, Senator Obama broke his word to the American people.
Now, after repeated, shameless attacks on John McCain’s military service, Senator Obama has failed to personally repudiate them. Once again, Senator Obama has failed to fulfill his promise of change. Sadly, Senator Obama has seemingly been seduced by the politics as usual, the selfish politics of anything goes.
John McCain wants this campaign to be about the issues – a campaign that focuses on real solutions to the challenges facing our country. Unfortunately, Senator Obama and his campaign surrogates seem unwilling to engage in that conversation.
Using the link above, tell us what you think about Senator Obama’s emerging record – a record that doesn’t seem to match his promise for a different kind of politics.
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Now my two cents:
It sounds to me like John McCain is asking his supporters for permission to fight back.
When your attempts at diplomacy continue to be rejected and ignored, it's time to fight.
It's time for a punch in the nose!
I think McCain should take off the gloves and fight fire with fire. He has my thumbs up and I will not think any less of him for doing so. :)
My Friends,
Last week, Senator Obama made a few comments I would like to respond to. Senator Obama claimed that all John McCain has to offer is a naive and irresponsible belief that tough talk would cause Iran to give up their nuclear program. He should have known better.
I have some news for Senator Obama: Simply talking, even with soaring rhetoric, will not convince Iran to give up its nuclear program. And for the president of the United States to sit down for an unconditional, face-to-face meeting with the leader of Iran is simply reckless.
John McCain has made it very clear that we will not negotiate with terrorist organizations. By conducting a presidential meeting with the leader of Iran - the world's largest state sponsor of terrorism - as Senator Obama wants to do, we would legitimize a regime that is dedicated to the extinction of Israel and is responsible for the death of brave young Americans. read more »
